This week, local media has been very excited by the arrival of a large pink container ship in Felixstowe with the word “One” in big white lettering on the side. I get it — it’s big, it’s bold, and it’s delivering lots of good things for people. We saw similar excitement the week before last when we launched our equally pink “One Suffolk” leaflet, inviting the people of Suffolk to have their say on Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).
It may not come as a surprise that LGR isn’t seen as the most exciting topic. But it’s an incredibly important one. The way local government is structured hasn’t changed in the last 50 years, so it’s essential people — particularly the service users of the future — engage with it. The response to our county-wide campaign so far has been nothing short of spectacular. Over 7,000 people have already had their say on what’s important to them.
Our engagement doesn’t start and end with a single pink leaflet, of course. So far, we’ve held over 40 evening meetings with town and parish councils, listening carefully to what local councillors are telling us about what they want from unitary local government. We’re holding similar meetings with businesses, community groups, and voluntary organisations too.
At the Suffolk Show, we launched our latest round of “Local Matters – We Are Listening” events, where the council travels across Suffolk, visiting towns and villages to speak to residents about local issues, including the One Suffolk plans. So far, hundreds of people have spoken to us at these events about what LGR should mean for them — all vital engagement that’s feeding into our final business case.
And of course, we’ve been using social media and online tools to ensure that as many people as possible — including young people and those from harder-to-reach communities — have had the opportunity to have their say too.
A truly One Suffolk approach to engagement — and it’s really paying off.
Now, not everyone is thrilled by our herculean efforts to engage with the people of Suffolk — least of all the District and Borough councils, who have been conspicuously absent from any form of real engagement beyond their fire-and-forget survey. Instead, they’ve locked themselves away, jealously guarding their nonsensical and costly plans to carve Suffolk into three councils. They’ve point-blank refused to release their controversial maps showing which towns and villages have been traded to which unitary. They’ve remained silent on the increased council tax for many and how they plan to deliver vital adult and children’s services after putting a wrecking ball through them.
Rumour has it they may finally cave to public pressure and show us the lines on those maps tomorrow – we shall have to wait and see.
One of the many complaints I’ve heard from district and borough leaders is that money is all we care about. That isn’t true — but the accusation cuts to the core of what their model ignores. Financial sustainability is essential. Councils will be responsible for running services that support the most vulnerable in our society. No one wins awards for small unitary councils going bankrupt in their first few years. And they certainly do no favours for the elderly, disabled, and children of this county by promoting a model which, by their own admission, will cost more than the current system — a system already financially stretched. In fact, I believe they’re putting those futures at risk by doing so.
This is why we’re so strongly opposed to the proposal from Suffolk’s districts and boroughs to split the county in three. It will mean three sets of salaries for top-level executives and senior staff, and more of the same old story from local government. It means creating new structures and new, highly paid management to deliver three sets of services currently delivered by one countywide team.
In my view, their plans for three councils have less to do with good local government — and far more to do with maintaining their own perceived political fiefdoms. Theirs is a model rooted in the politics of yesterday — not what’s best for apolitical service delivery, not what’s best for the taxpayer, and not what’s best for Suffolk. By contrast, with One Suffolk, the savings would be sufficient to invest more in services, ensure everyone — including in Ipswich — sees their council tax set as low and fair as possible, allow for proper planning of housing allocations countywide, and build a coherent case for investment in key infrastructure like the Ely and Haughley rail junctions, A11 Fiveways, A14 Copdock interchange — and yes, the Ipswich Northern Route or an alternative to ease congestion on the A14 when the Orwell Bridge closes.
Breaking Suffolk up would see these projects — and Suffolk’s towns and villages — pitted against each other in funding bids, trying to catch the eye of a new Suffolk and Norfolk mayor.
I genuinely believe local government reorganisation is an exciting opportunity to take the best of what districts and the county do — and create something new and fit for the future. I make no apologies for doing everything I can to make sure people engage with it.
At the County Council, we remain convinced that Suffolk is an identity worth preserving — and that One Suffolk is smarter, simpler, and better for our residents.
There’s still time to have your say – visit www.onesuffolkcouncil.co.uk/residents-survey/, call 0345 603 1842, or visit a community library.
